Smudge's Story
by mothwing'slove
Summary: You may have seen Firestar's side, but what about Smudge? Find out what happens with Smudge after Firestar and the Clans leave the forest. New cats and a new plot! Read! :
1. Chapter 1: The Departing

A plump black and white tom opened his eyes after his long rest. It was a beautiful night last night: the moon shined on the shrubs and flowers, turning them silver. The fenceposts glittered from the frost and he shivered. He loved being cold.

Rubbing against the posts, he saw another cat plod into the yard through the loose part of fence. It was a gray tabby, purring and mewing a greeting. "Hello, Smudge!" The gray tom mewed happily. He had a blue collar around his neck and the bell around it jingled.

Smudge, the black and white tom, nodded. "Hey Rocky, how was last night?" He asked suspiciously, searching his friend over. Lately, Rocky's Twolegs hadn't been feeding him and he looked like he was starving. Smudge didn't know why the Twolegs were acting that way. Boy, were Twolegs strange.

Rocky held his chest out. "I'm actually getting better. I asked Friday if I could take a quick bite." He sat down and licked his chest contentedly. "Did you do good last night? Man, I'm jealous. At least your Twolegs feed you." He sadly hung his head.

The black and white tom licked his friend's ear, comforting the distressed cat. A few moments later Smudge froze. "Wait, that's crazy!" He yowled.

The gray tabby shrugged. "Well, you know Twolegs. First thing you think they love you and next thing you know-"

"No," interjected Smudge. "I mean, you asked Friday for food? _Friday? For_ _food? _Are you CRAZY?" Friday was only the sweetest, prettiest cat in the cluster of Twoleg homes. She was beautiful, and smart at that. She was a marmalade tabby with green eyes, and always had a pink flower tucked behind her ear. It looked painful, but she had told Smudge herself that it didn't hurt at all. That was the only time that she had talked to him, otherwise she was not outside, busy, keeping off groups of goggling males, or running away from jealous cliques of she-cats, attempting to attack her.

"Oh yes," mewed Rocky thoughtfully. "I did ask Friday. Did you know that her owner feeds her canned food? It is very tasty, as a matter of fact." He held his had high.

Smudge nodded. "Hmm…hey, sorry about your Twolegs, that's really sad. If you want, you can come over here anytime you want and take some of my food. I don't like it anyway." He smiled and licked his friend's silver fur again, calming him down.

The gray tabby smiled gratefully. "Thanks, pal," he purred. "But I don't need to take your food. It's fine; I'm covered," he mewed brightly. It cheered Smudge up to see his best friend's positive attitude was starting to develop again. When his Twolegs stopped feeding him food, Rocky was really cranky. Besides, food was the substance that fueled cats' bodies, minds, and manner.

Rocky yawned. "Well, time to go. I have to go to the cutter today. Too bad, huh?" He mewed glumly. "I guess I can't be a tom anymore." He hung his head and disappeared behind the fence, the loose board swinging to and fro.

Smudge quickly leaped over, clearing the jump by a paw-length. _That was clos_e, he thought, sighing in relief. "Hey Rocky!" He yowled back to his friend. But the gray tabby tom was already going through the cat door and probably didn't hear him. Smudge growled. Rocky's Twolegs weren't feeding him, and now they were taking away his pride as a tom.

He couldn't just let them slide like that. The black and white tom dropped silently into the other yard. Suddenly, there was a loud noise. Smudge froze. His heart sank as he realized that it was one of a cat's worst enemies: a dog.

**How do you like me first cliffhanger! Haaahhh! Part two will come out soon, to not keep you hanging too long! ******** Please review so I can know what to do better. **


	2. Chapter 2: The Kidnapping

**Sorry the action isn't very good, but I was listening to actiony music so that helped. **

Smudge snarled, eyeing the dog ahead of him. The dog snarled back, meeting the black and white tom's eyes. The black and white tom could even see a pile of mowed grass sweep past the two facing each other. Smudge slashed at the dog's nose and dashed away, leaving the dog to deal with its injured nose.

But it didn't work. The dog just got even more angry and thumped right after Smudge, snapping its jaws dramatically. Drool poured out, showering Smudge. Yowling with disgust, Smudge jumped on top of the fence and then, without the dog knowing, jumped onto it's back and clawed at the back of the dog. It howled in pain, but wouldn't stop fighting. It spun round and round, attempting to get the vain cat off of its back.

Suddenly, Smudge was hurled up into the air, headed straight for the dog's jaws. Ten seconds and he would be dog food. So much for saving Rocky. A loud snarl filled the air, and a whapping sound. Smudge thumped on the ground, knocking the wind out of him. Recovering his lost oxygen, he sprung up. It was a Twoleg, slapping the dog's rump with a stack of what looked like wood, but thinner.

The twoleg gone, this was Smudge's cue. He leaped over the fence, clearing it by inches. He proudly purred, but seconds later fell to the ground. Rubbing his head, he continued on. Smudge heard Rocky's distressed mews, then followed them. Scurrying across the front yard of the Twoleg nest, he saw that his tabby friend was stuck in a box, held by his Twoleg owner.

Rocky didn't even to try to mewl out for help; this was his destiny. He wasn't a tom anymore, this was the end…A loud thump occurred, and he saw Smudge's face. "Smudge, thank goodness you're here, I thought that I would be taken to the cutter and-"

"Yes I understand, just go! Now, before your Twolegs find out!" Snarled the black and white tom.

Rocky flattened his ears. "But the Twolegs, they'll find out, the box is lighter-"

"They won't find out," Smudge mewed, cutting off his friend again. "Because I'm taking your place. Get out now, hurry!"

The tabby frowned. "But…Smudge, you don't have to do that. It's better me than you, I swear, please don't go!" He yowled, sounding close to tears.

"ROCKY, JUST GO NOW!" Caterwauled Smudge as the Twoleg carrying the cage looked down and saw the two cats. Only…Rocky was gone. Smudge sighed in relief. His friend had did what he told him to: a good friend at that. But the tom cried out in terror as the door was shut and then thrown into the back of the monster, and into complete darkness.

Shivering, Smudge waited. The moments went on like it was days. It lasted too long to get to a place in which you're doomed. He was starting to get sick, and was almost going to vomit until the monster stopped shortly and the Twolegs opened the back, smiling and talking in soft tones. But it didn't cheer Smudge up any more. As they neared the building, he found something…a metal screw…and it was loose! He had just found a way out.

Pushing up on the screw, he felt the door loosen and fly open. Of deep relief, Smudge bounded out of the box, then scurrying away, and disappearing around the corner. Unfortunately, the twoleg had felt the cage door bump against his leg, and had noticed that Smudge was rushing around the corner.

The group of Twolegs started shouting and scrambled around, searching desperately for the tom. A few searched by the monster, while many went into the new nest and frantically asked around. One was smart enough to go around the corner by the fence and see Smudge just standing right there by where the Thunderpath started.

Shouting with glee, it lumbered slowly to Smudge, holding out his hands and wiggling his fingers. Smudge froze. There was only one thing to do: run. But the only place to go was across the busy Thunderpath.

Taking in a shaky breath, he prepared himself to spring, like Rusty or Firepaw had taught him long ago. And then, just as the Twoleg grabbed for him, Smudge sprinted across the Thunderpath, everything now a blur to him. Not looking where he was going and only worried about the monsters, he ran into a fence.

"OW!" he screamed, rubbing a large lump on his head. Turning around, he looked and saw that he had gotten across the Thunderpath successfully. He yowled in triumph, then ran into the wall again. That time hurt even more. What was wrong? Smudge didn't even know where he was going anymore.

He heard an angry yowl and he saw a gang of kittypets fly over the fence, apparently in some kind of formation. "What is going on here? What the- why are you here, stray?" Asked a mean looking brown tabby tom. He reminded Smudge of what Firepaw told him was Tigerclaw. "What are you doing?" He repeated irritably.

The others snarled and glared at poor Smudge. He gulped. Were these possibly the forest cats that Rusty had told him about? No, they were kittypets; he could tell by the smell and the collars.

Smudge shivered and started to sweat. "I- I'm just…just moved in," Smudge mewed proudly. "Over there," he pointed out with his tail. What was he doing? Telling lies to these firebrand cats? He shook the thoughts looming in his head and went on with his story.

"Oh yeah?" Sneered the tom, looking into Smudge's eyes. He gestured to the cursing Twolegs across the street. "I just saw you running from them. Those your Twolegs, softie?" He growled. The other cats ganged around him, all giving Smudge the same glare.

"Well, not exactly. They were just…trying to catnap me." Stammered Smudge. "I managed to run away from them in time, but I was going so fast that I couldn't tell where I was going, so I ran into this fence right here," he mewed, patting the fence with his paw. He sure was making this story up fast, good thing he had a few fresh ones in his mind.

"I'm thinking that they's your Twolegs," The tabby tom barked. "They's was keeping you in a kennel."

Flattening his ears, Smudge backed off. "Well, I don't really have Twolegs, but-"

"Then what's that?" Pointed out a shaggy gray tom. Smudge froze as he was pointing to his collar. "Ummm…I used to have Twolegs, but I…I ran away. Didn't think the soft life was right for me," he meowed proudly. "And I can't get this thing off of me, so now I'm filling the streets with my pitiful tinkling sound. It just makes me sad as heck."

The brown tabby snarled and got closer and closer to Smudge. The other cats in the posse joined him, and before he knew it Smudge was pinned down by the vicious cat.

"Listen, I got two choices for ya," The tom whispered menacingly in the black and white tom's ear. "Either pledge full loyalty to us, or die." He unsheathed his claws, putting them close to Smudge's throat.

Smudge trembled. He felt like he'd rather go through the dog than this. At least he had saved Rocky. He was brave! He felt a momentary tingle run through him, filling him with warmth.

"What's the decision, fluffy?" A tawny tom snarled.

Breathing fast and starting to hyperventilate, Smudge was about to give in. Suddenly, another cat dropped in, unsheathing her claws like the tabby had. She must have come from the other side of the fence. "Get off of him or I _swear_ you will suffer the consequences," she yowled. Smudge gulped and admired her beauty. She was a ginger tabby with a white belly. He shook the thoughts out of his head instantly as he thought of Friday back home. She would be waiting for him, welcoming him like a hero and giving him a backrub.

The tabby whimpered and instantly sheathed his claws. The other toms cowered behind him, all sheathing their claws also.

Smudge smiled, but jumped as the tabby bared his teeth and reached for his neck. Shutting his eyes tight, Smudge waited for death to come. But he couldn't hear anything but a snap, and looseness around his neck. Opening his eyes, he saw that the tom had only ripped his collar off. Apparently the story had hit the cat and he was setting Smudge free.

He smiled as he saw the others departing, along with the brown tabby, with, as Smudge realized with a satisfied look, his tail between his legs. He got up to thank the she-cat, but she had gone. He looked around to see if there was any sign of her, a tail, paws, anything, even a whisker. The black and white cat was more than grateful to the ginger she-cat. He had to thank her somehow other than words.

**Sorry the ending is so bad, but yeah. How did you like this one? It's really really long, I know, but that's okay. I got a good idea in my head, so that was what went on. R&R:D**


	3. Chapter 3: Finding Her Again

Smudge looked to see if there were any monsters coming, then silently crossed the Thunderpath. This was getting harder every day, as a monster howled at him in the middle of the road. Smudge sheepishly kept going, saying sorry in his mind. But he was better than this! What was he, a softie? Because he was out on his own, a stray…and strays were different than kittypets, that was for sure.

With the can in his mouth, he jumped onto the smaller Thunderpath and sighed in relief. He had finally gone across! He had been waiting for what seemed like forever to cross, and now was the perfect time. Jumping over the fence, he saw the ginger tabby she-cat, landing perfectly and going in the other direction.

He followed her for what seemed like more than three blocks, until he had to shout out, "Hey!" He didn't say it in a mean way, just to get her attention.

She jumped, then turned around and caught sight of Smudge. "Oh. It's you." She growled. She held her tail high and went away, about to cross a third Thunderpath.

"Um, yeah. Thanks for saving me from those guys. Uh…I got this to thank you." He set down the can of his favorite cat food and smiled warmly.

Disgusted, she hissed, "What do you think, I eat this stuff? I'm not a fattie, in case you haven't noticed!" She yowled. "I eat hard food! And how the heck do you think I'll get this thing open?" She flattened her ears and stalked away, running across the Thunderpath in four bounds.

Smudge shivered. She must have been a kittypet, she said that she ate hard food. But that stuff was gross! It looked like rabbit droppings and tasted even worse. And Smudge had lost a few teeth in it. He shook his head. It wasn't a big loss, she was a jerk.

Sadly padding off, he looked for some way back home. He memorized the way that the monster had come into the facinity, and he had followed that at least three times today. But there wasn't any way that looked familiar to him, and there was probably no way to find it today. The sun was coming down and it was getting dark. The Thunderpath lights turned on along with the moon and Smudge pounced across the street to where he was camping. It was going to be a long time before he got back home.

Silently, the black and white tom slipped through the cat door. He felt like such a chump doing this, but he was desperate. Sniffing around, he sighed as he couldn't detect any scent that smelled like food. His belly growled in protest, but Smudge went on, ignoring his sad stomach.

Suddenly, he could smell something. Smudge dashed across the Thunderpath, feeling his heart jump into his throat as he nearly missed a monster. He was being such a hollow-head, going across the Thunderpaths like this. And foraging for food, stealing other cats' dinners. He felt terrible, no normal cat would do this.

Sliding through the open door to the next nest, he instantly saw it: a round, hollow dish, that, to Smudge's delight, was full of food. He lapped it up excitedly. It didn't taste the best, but it was still food, and he could always imagine that it was something else.

He gulped down the last of it, then hurried for the door. Every part of him told him to hurry, go as fast as he could, but as he got to the front door, he saw that it was closed. An adult Twoleg was standing in his way, glaring down at him. "Um…eh heh," Smudge mewed. He backed away slowly, but apparently was too slow. The Twoleg picked him up, took him into its arms, then threw Smudge out the window.

Dazed, the tom got up and sighed. At least he was out of that Twoleg's nest. He shook his head and headed back to where he was staying. Why did he ever get himself into this mess? Sure, he was saving his friend, but was it really worth getting into this? He pictured Rocky back at home, flirting with Friday…his Friday…he growled at the thought. If Rocky and Friday were together when he got home, he would kill him.

Passing by, he saw a somewhat familiar shape…where had he seen that cat before? His heart leapt as he saw the ginger tabby she-cat, grooming herself by a few trash bins in an alley. He smiled, then strutted down the alley, looking as if he didn't even know she was there.

She looked up from her licking. Rolling her eyes, she went back to grooming herself and tried to ignore him.

Smudge sighed. It seemed like she wasn't noticing him. Or she was trying not to. Padding past her, he stopped at the foot of the fence, then, preparing to leap, pretended he just realized she was there. "Oh, hey, it's you. Where have I seen you before? Wasn't it…"

The she-cat bristled. "Listen, the only reason that I saved you that other day was because I didn't want your blood on my territory! I don't want anything to do with you, okay? And, just so you know, I know that you were pretending the instant that you came down here," she snapped. She then dashed around the corner, off to goodness only knew.

Smudge growled. The nerve she had! What cat had the gall to talk to any cat like that? He snarled and humped his back, then slowly padded back to his home. A hot flash went through him, and suddenly, Smudge felt a beautiful but melancholy feeling. He wanted more than anything to win her heart. She was the most…no! He couldn't think this, he had Friday at home! He could not, could NOT fall for love! Could he?


	4. Chapter 4: The Dream

Blinking the sun out of his eyes, Smudge crawled out of his makeshift nest. He shivered at the cold weather, but then froze with fear as he saw something strange: the sun was pink. Suddenly, it got clouded over by a fierce black, making it pitch dark. Fortunately, Smudge could see in the dark, but to his despair he found out that no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't see anything, not even his own paws when waved in front of him.

He screamed, not knowing what to do. He just started running, just kept running, as long as he could. What kind of sick place was this, one where cats couldn't see, where it was colder than he had ever felt…it even seemed like Smudge had never felt happiness in his entire life…he felt lonely.

Pain rushed through his head as Smudge bumped into something. It was hard, and it didn't feel good at all. His head ached, he wanted to die, just curl up somewhere and-

A white light was seen. It seemed far away, but Smudge could see a cat, standing there in the light. He felt around for what had stopped him, but he couldn't find it. He analyzed the light, at how beautiful it was. He finally felt warmth spread in his body, all his happiness rush back in a flash. But the shine faded, disappearing over a hill. Shocked, Smudge yowled in terror and chased after it. He had to have it, had to grasp it, had to-

A cat appeared right in front of him before he could go any further. Smudge yelled and skidded to a stop. But instead of colliding with the cat, he just went straight right through it. He stopped himself and relaxed as the cat reappeared a few moments after he halted. It was Rusty, or Firestar when Smudge had last seen him..

"Rusty?" Smudge asked. "Is that you?" He took a few steps towards him, but Rusty just kept backing away. "What's wrong? What is happening to me?" Smudge asked.

Rusty was silent for what seemed like millions of heartbeats until finally he mewed, "You must find what you want, then get it. If you don't, despair will come to you and your companion. You will lose him, and it shall be terrible. You must find her."

Smudge widened his eyes. "Find who? Who will I lose? Hello? What do you mean?" He called out desperately. But Rusty disappeared, and Smudge was left in the pitch dark. The light had gone, and he felt chilled and miserable once again.

The last thing Smudge heard was Rusty's voice again. "If you hesitate, you will lose both her and him. The only thing you will have left to cherish is…" and with a last ghastly sigh, Rusty's voice faded off.

And Smudge fainted.


	5. Chapter 5: The Chase

**Yeah sorry last chappie was really short, but I thought that the dream should be short. Pleez no flamers. Criticism is nice, it helps me get better (like the Friday's perfectness dilemma; who do you think will cause chaos in the end? Read last chapter and realize!) but flaming is just plain mean. Thanx for the support, everyone!**

Smudge sighed. What was he doing, he was crazy! He was shivering all over. At the foot of a very tall and very familiar fence, he gulped and took a large leap. Doing this task wasn't as easy as it looked.

As he cleared the fence, he started to sniff around for that beautiful smell (at least he thought so) and perked up when he picked it up. Hopefully he would do this right, or else he would pay the consequences. This was his only chance, do this or pay the price.

As he didn't see the cat he was looking for come out behind the trash bin, he sighed. Why did it have to come to this? He growled, then, with both dread and confidence looming in his heart, he let out a loud mew. He thought it was loud enough, it basically filled the entire alley with sound. But no cat came out.

Finally, he had to speak up. "Hey?" He called out. It was going to be something more like, "Hey!" but it had come out like a squeak since he was so nervous. "H-hello? Please tell me you're there? Hello?" He didn't want to sound pitiful, but he just had to call out to the cat he was looking for, for the good of not just his fate, but his feelings.

At last, his heart skipped a beat, no, three beats as he saw a ginger and white tabby come out behind the trash bin. "Oh no, you again? Why are you here, you don't need to be! Don't tell me you're here for-"

"Excuse me, but I…um…came here to tell you something. Uh, I just want…want you to, uh, help me out here. It is really hard to find my way home, and I think that I need…umm…your help." He flattened his ears and started to shake so violently that even she could see.

"What? What kind of question is that? I wouldn't do that even if-"

But she was cut off by a brown tabby tom and two others strolled in. "Well well, look who it is. Little girly-cat," he sneered, prancing around. The others behind him laughed and glared at the she-cat both at the same time.

"Get lost, Burr. I didn't ask for you to get on my case again," she warned, unsheathing her claws quietly. Smudge quaked even more: he didn't want a fight to go on, or else he wouldn't ever be able to get a hold of her any other time.

Burr, the tabby, snarled and started toward the ginger tabby. "Well, looks like you will go down the hard way, Girly-girl."

"Don't call me any nicknames. Don't even call me anything, just leave me alone!" She hissed. She flattened her ears and backed away. Smudge could swear he saw tears come out of the poor cat's eyes.

But Burr just kept cornering her. "But I can't leave you alone when…" He paused, looking over his claws and tearing off an outer sheath thoughtfully. "I shall take you away from here!"

The she-cat froze. "Wha- what do you mean?" She whispered. Smudge finally saw that she had a weakness. He didn't think it was possible for her to have a fear when she was always so fearless and aggressive.

"I mean that I want to be with you…forever!" He laughed. He looked her in the eye, then dramatically sighed into her ear, "I will take you away from here," He mewed, unsheathing his claws and ran them along her back. "There are many other toms that would _love_ to get ahold of you," he purred, clawing at her back as if he were grooming her. "Besides, if I gave you to them, then I would be the most popular cat in the crowd!" he chuckled.

"Run!" She howled. She dashed off, with Burr in pursuit. "What are you waiting for?" She screamed in Smudge's ear. She grazed his flank with her claws to get him to follow her. He instantly followed without question.

With Burr and his team on their heels, the two leaped over the fence and screamed. Smudge flopped onto the pavement and kept going after the she-cat. Boy, she was fast. Unless she was scared for her life, which would be very surprising for her.

Burr screamed, "Get back here! I won't give up this easily!" and suddenly got even faster. Smudge's eyes widened and the she-cat screamed as loud as he had ever heard a cat scream.

The black and white tom shut his eyes tight. He didn't care where he went, he just hoped it was far from here. He wanted to be home, with Rocky, and eat actual food, and play with his scratching post, and be happy for once. He didn't care about Friday anymore, because that day he had pushed his love for her out of his mind. Now it was all focused on her, on that ginger one. It made him stronger and he ran faster. It wasn't just some fake love so he could be the coolest stray pack around, it was for real.

He stopped, tired out, with Burr far away. Apparently the tabby tom wasn't good at running and didn't have much endurance. He sighed, and then felt his muscles relax. Suddenly, right as he was calming down, Smudge felt a tug on his tail, then was pulled into a small hole. He just barely fit, and it was a tight fit when being tugged in. It was the she-cat, and she had a firm grasp on his tail with her teeth. Pain shot through him, but he ignored it.

"Where are you?" Snarled Burr. "I can smell you, I just can't-"

"Run!" The she-cat squealed as she shoved him out of the crack. Smudge skittered after her with Burr right on their tails. His stomach churned. He really was in trouble now: Burr was right behind them now, just far enough to get a hold of their tails. This would make it all too easy for him to carry that ginger she-cat off. Suddenly, he saw something out of the corner of his eye: a chain link fence. That was it! They could slide under and get away from that cat. Apparently Burr wasn't the best jumper, Smudge had found out earlier, so it would conceal them from him!

"Hey," he huffed, "Let's slip under that chain link fence. We can get away from Burr, and we'll be perfectly safe! I'm sure we can fit!" He mewed excitedly.

"Are you crazy?" She cried. "We can't fit under there, we're too big!"

"Yes but we can dig under before he gets to us! Come on, all we have to do is speed up a little!"

"No, I don't want to!" was the refusal back. "I can't, I don't like those!" She cried. Smudge rolled his eyes. "But I thought…since your attitude…I thought you weren't scared of anything. Come on, you can count on me!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Please? Do it for me?"

"DEFINETELY no!"

Groaning, Smudge gave up. He sped ahead himself and started rapidly digging under the fence. It killed his paws, but he had to do it for the sake of him and the she-cat. Burr was getting closer…the hole was big enough. It could probably fit two cats.

"Come on! Under here!" Smudge cried out. "There isn't any other way to get him off your back!"

Finally, the she-cat dove for the fence, just sliding under it. Smudge joined her, then scrabbled his paws to get a pawhold of the grass on the other side. But, to his dismay, they had both gone in at the same time. Now the two of them were cramped together, the fence scraping at their back like claws.

"Now look what you did!" She screamed. "Look! You got us stuck! I'm stuck!" she wailed. "With you!"

"Well I'm sure we can get out _some_ way," Smudge mewed. "How about-"

"Aww, look, is the wittle kitty stuck in the fence?" Cawed a familiar voice. It was Burr, and he had caught up. "Oh, I'm really sorry, but I can't help you." He hissed then pawed up clumps of dirt and mud and kicked it at them.

"Eat moss, Burr!" called out the she-cat. "Go away while you're at it!"

"Okay, I guess those toms will have to wait a little longer…But just a little!" He snarled, then scattered away with his comrades. That was funny, it seemed like he was scared of her. Smudge laughed as he ran away, scared out of his wits.


	6. Chapter 6: Escape Is Sweet

She groaned. "So now what do I do? Oh yes, sit here and starve because YOU trapped me here!" She snarled.

Smudge sighed. "Well, at least while we're here, can you at least tell me your name?" He asked wearily. She was so sharp sometimes.

She held her head high. "Clover. Now leave me alone and don't talk to me."

"Well…are you a house cat or a stray?" he asked, making terrible small talk.

Clover kneaded her paws. "Well…it's a long story, I don't think-"

"I would love to hear it," Smudge mewed, being as friendly and careful as possible. One small move could lose him his ear.

"Um…okay." She licked her paw before starting. "It all started when I was adopted. My family was beautiful: two kits and two adults. Their house was awesome- a three story house with a pool in the back. It was wonderful there. They were really nice to me and everything. I loved it there." She flattened her ears. "But a little later, they got sick of me. The kits didn't play with me anymore, and the adults did their work instead of a game. It saddened me. Finally, they got another kitten. It was all about her, that's all they did. Play with her, love her…" She started to gently sob. "It tore me apart. It didn't seem like they were paying attention to me anymore. In fact, they were abusing me: not changing my litter, not feeding me, and mistreating me. They kept hitting me with a long brush stick."

Smudge was surprised. On the outside, Clover was an aggressive, insolent, rude, audacious cat that didn't like anybody. But Smudge had never seen this side of her before, it was like a whole other part of her. "I'm really sorry," He mewed softly.

She felt a purr rise into her throat, but held it back. "Yeah, it made me sad. It made me feel like I would never be happy, or…" she paused. "Or love anybody ever again." After an awkward silence, she changed the subject. "So, what about you? You seem so ragged that you must be a stray, huh?" She chuckled.

Smudge smiled. "Um, actually, I was a housecat too. I had a friend named Rocky and he was about to go to the cutter, so I had to replace him. A monster took me here, and now I'm lost, I don't know where home is. Again, I need your help with finding my way." He sighed.

"Well, I'm not sure I know where you live," She pointed out. "But I guess we should look around, shouldn't we?"

Smudge nodded numbly. Was she being nice to him, or just striking conversation for her sake? He didn't want to figure it out, just was happy that he was talking with her. "Yeah, but I guess there will be plenty of time for that after we get out of here. Um, sorry I stranded us here," he mewed quietly.

"You'd better be!" she cried out. "But that's okay, I guess. We'll get out of here somehow. Hey, how about we dig with our back paws? That might help a little bit."

Smudge nodded, then cried, "You're a genius! That's a great idea. Here, let's start now…" So the two started kicking up the earth with their paws, but stopped fast. "That is tiring though," Smudge pointed out. Clover nodded. "Just keep doing it!"

So they kept kicking at the ground until nightfall. It was getting dark out, and they were almost halfway there. "Should we stop for today?" Smudge panted. "My feet are tired."

Clover flattened her ears, and Smudge expected a sharp remark, but she just said, "Mine too. I guess we'll quit for the night." And with that, Clover got to sleep in what seemed like five heartbeats.

Smudge was satisfied; they were almost out of this fence, Burr was gone, and he had at least made friends with Clover. He liked her, she was pretty and nice. Pretty nice.

He laughed to himself at his humor and then closed his eyes. It was a long day and they hadn't had anything to eat, so he had to get them out or they would get pretty hungry. Smiling at Clover, he started kicking with his back paws and went all through the night, just out of his love for her.

It was morning and Smudge was just going to sleep when Clover woke up. She felt a looseness on her back. There wasn't a claw-like fence there, and, amazed, realized that she was out. Clover saw Smudge beside her, heaving with exhaustion and fast asleep. There was grass and mud on his back paws. She widened her eyes, but purred, then licked him on the cheek. After, she wandered off to find some food. He would have been hungry if he had worked all night.

Smudge woke up at the feeling of warmness on his cheek. Clover was up and browsing in the local trash bins. He smiled, then to himself sighed. It was all worth it in the end, he thought. It was totally worth it.


	7. Chapter 7: The Departing of a Friend

Smudge felt the happiest he ever had. His heart was racing, but it was good because he knew that this was it. This was true love.

He could tell Clover was happy too. The two just kept staring at each other happily until Smudge saw somebody familiar leap through the pet door. Smudge jumped as he saw who it was. "Rocky!" He yowled to the silver tabby. He ran up to his long lost friend and purred.

"Smudge, is that you?" asked Rocky. When Smudge nodded, he mewed, "Wow! I thought I'd never see you again! I'm so glad to see you!" he exclaimed. The silver tabby was almost speechless when he saw his friend.

"Yeah, it was nothing much," Smudge mewed. "I had Clover to help me find my way."

Rocky looked her over disgustedly. "What are you looking at, tabby-face?" She snarled. He was looking at her battle scars that were all over her body and face.

"Um, Smudge, who is this?" Rocky asked. He certainly didn't like this unknown cat.

"Rocky, this is Clover," He mewed to his friend. "She helped me find my way back here. She used to live where-"

But before he could talk any longer, he saw a familiar sight. A beautiful marmalade tabby came swooping out of the cat door. She gave him a warm smile and greeted, "Hello, Smudgie. I see that you're finally back. I've been waiting for you."

Smudge's heart skipped a beat. "If that's what you're thinking, then-"

"No, it's not. I wanted to tell you that I finally found a mate. The kits are inside if you are wondering," she mewed when he gave her a quizzical look. She padded up by Rocky and nuzzled him. He licked her back.

Smudge shuddered. He half-wished that he was with Friday instead of Rocky. But he shook the thoughts away because he knew that he had Clover.

Speaking of which, Friday gave the ginger tabby a glare. "Who is this?" She asked. She sounded disgusted at the sight of a stray, but she tried to hold it back. She didn't do a very good job.

"Um, this is Clover. She was the one that helped me even get here. I'm afraid that she-"

"Clovie? Is that you?" Friday gasped. "I remember you; you used to live here with me!" She squealed. She sounded more excited than she actually was, to tell the truth.

Clover growled. "Friday," she mumbled. So she did know Friday. She must have been the cat that drove Clover out of her house.

"Oh wow, I hardly remember you, it has been so long!" Friday screamed. Clover, looking revolted, nodded. "Um, yeah, a month sure can kill a cat when it seems like it."

Rocky smiled. "So, is Clover your…" he smirked. "Girlfriend?" He burst into laughter and Friday went in with him, only hers was more like the shriek of a frightened kit.

Smudge flattened his ears. "No," he mewed bitterly. "I guess we're just friends."

With a last glare at Clover, Friday went, "Oh, guys, you won't believe this totally awesome place that I found the other day, right behind Hattie's yard." Smudge instantly thought of the beautiful tabby that had replaced Rusty when he left. "So, do you want to check it out?" Continued the yellow tabby. "Trust me, it is so cool! Come on Rocky, do you want to come?"

Rocky nodded and followed, but Smudge and Clover hesitated. "So, where is it?" Smudge asked.

She shrugged. "Oh, it's fine, just follow me." She definitely had Rocky, now she was going for Clover and Smudge too. "Come on, it isn't hard to follow me, just keep walking!"

Clover shrugged and scuffed her paw along the dust. "Um, I think I'll stay here," she mewed nervously.

Smudge shrugged. "Then I'll stay with you."

"Come on!" Rocky persuaded. "I'm going to do it, please come with me! I'd love it if you did!"

"Go on," Clover mewed. She smiled and licked his cheek. "I'll wait here for you guys to come back. Just don't be long, I have to get going soon. I'm sure Smudge wants to be home pretty soon too." She waved at him with a warm smile on her face.

Smudge lovingly licked Clover and set off behind Rocky for his friend's sake. He wasn't sure that he trusted Friday, but he wanted to be there for Rocky just in case he got in trouble or Friday tried to hurt him. Smudge certainly hoped that she would leave him alone and not try anything with the silver tabby. He shook his head and irritably set off behind his friend.

Smudge froze as the three cats stopped in front of a huge building site. It seemed like they were making a new set of Thunderpaths. Smudge recognized the many torn trees and rocks as the forest where Rusty used to live. The many destructive monsters had driven he and the other forest cats out. Smudge wished he had joined them and avoided this catastrophe. But he still had Clover. Thinking of her glittering green eyes automatically cheered him up.

"This is it, Rocky! What do you think?" Friday mewed, giggling like she always did. Smudge was beginning to get frightened by this cat's behavior. Always happy. No cat was always that happy.

"Well, I guess it's okay. What are we supposed to do here?" Rocky asked suspiciously. "Oh, I guess we can just hang out," Friday purred. "Or talk. Or, I don't know…do dares, you know, that general category."

Rocky shrugged. But the dare idea definitely turned his daredevil self on. "Ok, that sounds cool, I-"

"Ok, I'll go first!" Friday meowed. "Rocky, how about-"

"No!" Smudge called. "I don't think we should do this. Let's go back to the yard and-"

"Smudge," Rocky protested. "We were just starting to have fun! Besides, you probably only want to go back because of Clover." He smirked.

"No!" Smudge hissed. "I just don't think this is a very good idea. Let's go do something else." He crouched timidly. These two were really becoming kind of unfriendly with him, which was unusual for Rocky.

"Oh Rocky, just ignore him." Friday was really into getting Rocky to do a dare. Smudge hoped it wasn't dangerous. "Come on, I dare you to follow that car."

Rocky snorted. "Friday, that is the stupidest thing that I have ever heard. I can't follow a car, it's too dangerous!"

Smudge nodded. "Yes, and it could get Rocky killed! Come on Friday, let's go somewhere else." He tucked his tail between his legs. He didn't like the thought of losing his best friend.

"Okay, I guess I'll have to call you mouse for the rest of your days! Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse Mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse mouse! Go ahead and cower, you little mouse!"

Rocky sighed angrily. "Fine, I'll do it for you. I'll get you that little rock over there," he mewed, pointing to a heart shaped rock.

"Oh Rocky, would you really do that for me?" She whined.

Rocky nodded, and before Smudge could stop him, rushed out as fast as he could.

Smudge was horrified. It seemed like only moments until the inevitable happened. Rocky wasn't using good sense and was too focused on charming his mate to notice that a monster was zooming towards him. Rocky gasped, and quickly tried to escape. But it was too late. He couldn't escape the huge monster and had gotten run over.

"ROCKY!" Smudge wailed. He dashed out to his friend, not caring that he had to dodge the rushing monsters that seemed determined to crush him flat. "Rocky, buddy, are you okay?"

Nothing.

"Rocky, speak to me, buddy! Come on, let's go see your kits! I've been excited to see them, tell me their names, come on, talk to me!" but the silver tabby said nothing and just lied there, bleeding terribly with a vicious scar on his shoulder. It ran all the way down to his paw, and it there was glittering blood flowing freely.

Smudge, feeling like he was going to be sick, dashed over to Friday, infuriated. "What did you do?" He screamed. "You killed him! You killed Rocky! I thought you loved him!" He unsheathed his claws. Even though he didn't know how to fight, he sure was willing to shed blood on the marmalade tabby.

"I didn't do it!" She exclaimed. "I had no idea that he was going to get run over! I swear!"

"Well, swearing isn't enough," Smudge snarled. "I know that you did it! You made him go out there! We were perfectly fine until you brought that random subject up! Why did you have to lead him here!"

"Trust me, I didn't mean to," Friday mewed. "It wasn't me. Why don't you ask your little girlfriend…Clover, isn't it?" She smiled.

Smudge shook his head. "She didn't do it- she loves me too much! It wasn't her, was it?" Friday shrugged. "It was she that let him go."

Smudge rushed back to Friday's yard, horrified at what Friday had just told him. That wasn't true, that marmalade tabby was the one that was making up excuses! She was just thinking up useless ways to make him think that it was Clover…

The first thing he saw was the ginger tabby. "Clover!" He exclaimed. She stopped licking her paw and looked up. "Yes? What's the matter?" She asked, instantly seeing the black and white tom's discouraged face.

"Rocky…dead…monster…" Smudge gasped.

Clover leaned in. "What? What are you talking about?" She frowned. What was he talking about? It must be a tom thing.

"Rocky died…he got ran over by a twoleg monster… and you…YOU killed him!" He snarled. "It was you! You are the one that lured him into that trap, it was YOU!"

Clover gasped. "What?" She growled. She started fuming and Smudge just realized her attitude was the most sensitive one that he had seen. "What are you talking about? In case you haven't noticed, I didn't even come with you, numb skull! And yet you accuse _me_?" She snarled. Her fur prickled so that she looked twice her size.

Smudge painfully realized what he had did and flattened his ears. "I- I'm sorry, Clover, I just-"

"Just what, figured that you could just waltz in here and accuse me for something that another person did! I didn't think you thought that way about me, Smudge," she whimpered.

"But Clover, I really didn't mean to, seriously! It was Friday, she was the one that persuaded me it was you! Can't you trust me? After all we've been through?" He cried. He suddenly didn't feel that Clover loved him anymore. What had he done? He had just broken his bond with Clover, now he didn't have anything!

"Well, I could have trusted you a couple of minutes ago, but now I'm not so sure!" She hissed.

Smudge sighed. What had he done? He was such a jerk! Why did he even believe Friday at all? He went up to Clover and nudged her. "Clover, I swear that I would never accuse you of such a thing," he gently mewed. "It was Friday, she was the one who tried to tell me that you are the one that tried to kill Rocky. I'm really sorry, I shouldn't have believed her in the first place."

Clover, her back still turned to Smudge, growled, "And what does that mean?"

Smudge sighed and smiled. He knew what this meant. "That means that I was wrong…" he forced out, "And…you were right."

She smiled and leaped for him. She bowled him over and licked him. "I'm really sorry that I got so worked up, Smudge," She mewed.

He smiled. She had no idea how happy he was now. "I am so sorry that I did that, I was such a furball!"

She chuckled. "Yes, you really were." And the two headed for Smudge's home. And Clover wasn't even afraid, for she knew that it wouldn't turn out bad. She trusted him.


	8. Chapter8:Nowhere You Are Concerned About

A brown tabby with white patches laughed as he chased a butterfly. Another, a ginger tom, came rushing out by him and tried to steal it from him. The sun shined on the two as they fought over the small, precious butterfly. Suddenly, the delicate creature flew over the puddle of water that the birds often roosted in. The two kits splashed and played in the small vase.

Suddenly, a loud twoleg yowl was heard and an adult twoleg rushed out into the garden. He instantly picked up the two kits by the scruff and scolded them, then carried them inside. They groaned and plopped onto the ground.

A black and white tom approached. "Oh, what's wrong boys?" He asked, cocking his head.

The brown tabby kit sighed. "Well, dad, I was innocently chasing a butterfly when LUCKY here had to come and scare it away! Now both of us are in trouble!" He hissed.

The ginger tom shook his head. "No! Patch was the one that was chasing it away! I was practicing my hunting skills when-"

"Now boys," a ginger tabby came into the scene. "We can solve this an easy way, or we can solve this the hard way. Your choice," she mewed.

The two kits shook their heads. "No mother, we're sorry! We didn't mean to, it's just-" Patch started.

"Shhh, it's okay, boys," The ginger tabby she-cat gently cooed. "Now, the Twolegs brought us some food. You can go eat yours now."

The two kits cheered and hurried for their bowls. The she-cat was about to talk to her mate when she saw he was gone. She instantly presumed where he was and padded into her yard, where there was a freshly dug hole that led into the other yard. She squeezed under it to see the black and white tom, looking at an engraved rock that sat in a secluded corner.

She gently slinked over to her mate, whose ears were flattened. The rock read: _Here lies Friday, a beautiful cat and beloved pet. We shall miss her and always remember how she was hideously mauled by an excavator. _

"Do you miss her?" Asked the she-cat. She turned the tom's head so he could look into her eyes.

He gave in to the luminous green eyes and nodded. "But I don't know why… I shouldn't miss her, I mean, she killed Rocky and-"

"Shhhh…shhh, it's okay," she mewed like she had done with her kits. "It's fine. I miss her too. She was a good cat…until control and attention got the better of her."

The tom nodded, licked his mate tenderly, and crawled under the fence. The she-cat followed and was greeted by her kits. "Where were you, mom?" They asked curiously.

She shook her head. "Oh, nowhere," she sighed. "Nowhere that concerns you."

**So was it a bad ending? Was it pretty good? Pleez R&R! Just as a note, I plan on making a sequel sometime in the future. Tell me if it's a good idea!**


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